


Momoi's Collection

by bob2ff



Series: Miracles Hijinks [12]
Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: F/M, Friendship, Gen, Humor, Introspection, Male-Female Friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-05-11
Updated: 2014-05-11
Packaged: 2018-01-24 09:05:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,560
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1599317
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bob2ff/pseuds/bob2ff
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Momoi collected data, little facts about the precious people in her life, and kept them close to her, in her memories, like treasures.</p><p><em>Momoi knew a billion little facts and data about Dai-chan, carefully collected, and remembered, from over the years. There was his first slam dunk, occurring at dusk, the darkening sky the backdrop to the outdoor courts that were their childhood mainstay. There was his extensive collection of gravure magazines and Mai-chan photobooks, numbering up to the hundreds (he never knew the exact figure, but Momoi </em>knew<em>. Oh, she knew. She sometimes wished she didn’t).</em></p>
            </blockquote>





	Momoi's Collection

**Author's Note:**

> Written for BPS Challenge 70 (Hobbies).

Momoi knew a billion little facts and data about Dai-chan, carefully collected, and remembered, from over the years. There was his first slam dunk, occurring at dusk, the darkening sky the backdrop to the outdoor courts that were their childhood mainstay. There was his extensive collection of gravure magazines and Mai-chan photobooks, numbering up to the hundreds (he never knew the exact figure, but Momoi _knew_. Oh, she knew. She sometimes wished she didn’t).

There was data he would die rather than let anybody knew. Those were the ones Momoi _loved_ knowing by virtue of knowing him since childhood. There was the Incident with the Underwear, that happened in elementary school, resulting in Dai-chan’s lifelong habit in _double_ belting, whenever he needed to wear belts. And there was the Goya Incident, which Dai-chan would tell a billion secrets of _hers_ before he would ever let anyone know the eternal humiliation of the nine-year-old Dai-chan. 

And there was his ‘up and coming’ autobiography, which Momoi honestly thought would never get published, not because Dai-chan would never get famous (with his basketball like _that_ , she wouldn’t doubt that he wouldn’t), but because it was written in Dai-chan’s characteristic scrawl, intelligible and messy, so no publisher could even read it.

As Momoi met more people, she collected more and more data. Some of them she didn’t _care_ or even _want_ to know, like Midorin’s lengthy, lengthy morning routine to ensure Oha Asa’s blessing for the day. These she learned by Midorin’s sheer tenacity in informing her ‘for her, and Teikou’s, benefit’, like the entire list of horoscope signs for Teikou’s first string, to ensure no ‘unfortunate partnership or team match-ups’ would occur.

Some facts she loved to know, because it gave insight into hidden endearments a person, namely Midorin, would never reveal. For instance, his extensive collection of lucky items that he meticulously catalogued according to sign, _just in case_ one of their team members’ horoscope happened to be dead last that day. And there was his shiruko obsession, so potent he thought everyone shared his love for it. Once he bought an entire box of canned shiruko, sharing with every one in Teikou because “it would be inefficient to let them go to waste.” 

Some were useful to know. For instance, _Ki-chan’s_ morning routine was much more useful to know than Midorin’s, particularly his hair and facial regime. And the extensive catalogue of hair and beauty products that both ‘complimented the subtlety of Oriental features,’ yet were ‘ecologically responsible’. But there was his atrocious grades too, which Momoi unfortunately ended up knowing when Akashi-kun _assigned_ her to tutor him.

But then, Momoi didn’t mind so much knowing about Ki-chan’s atrocious grades when they would spend their study breaks singing J-Pop at the top of their voices, giggling at every mistiming of the lyrics and butchering of their pitch. 

One _long_ , random, _two-hour_ -long conversation, Mukkun had written out a sheet of his favourite snacks, catalogued by brand and flavour, and rated according to consistency, texture, and ‘snackability’. These data points were all lovingly explained to her, that one time she had blithely asked him what his favourite snack of all time was. Other than that, he would clam up about most things. So Momoi’s collection regarding Mukkun was skewed very heavily on one dimension — food.

Momoi never tried to ask Akashi-kun anything. Her attitude regarding her collection of data regarding him was: if he doesn’t tell me, he doesn’t want me to know. And if he doesn’t want me to know, I am better of _not_ knowing. So she collected, and remembered, diligently what he consciously chose to reveal to her — his hatred of wakame (so she would _never_ order it as part of their training diet), his very slight tofu soup obsession (one time, he had requested it for a week straight), and a barely-there tolerance towards Dai-chan’s loudness (he had said it straight one time: “Momoi-san, please keep Aomine-kun away from me today. I can’t deal with him today, have a headache.”) 

Other facts about Akashi-kun, Momoi deduced on her own. His reticience whenever everyone talked about their parents. His weekly shogi sessions with Midorin, that revealed volumes about his respect, and affection, for him. His indulgence of Mukkun’s random questions, and a resigned, yet amused tolerance of Dai-chan’s sometimes obnoxious rowdiness and Ki-chan’s sometimes annoying peppiness. 

When Momoi fell in love with Tetsu-kun, it was the first time she set about collecting data about a target, a woman on a mission. Before that, every fact had naturally fell into her collection, by virtue of interacting with her boys regularly. But Tetsu-kun held facts about himself in a vice grip, never revealing anything intentionally. To collect data about Tetsu-kun, to try to get to know him, one had to observe him as skillfully as he observed the people around him.

As her collection of Tetsu-kun facts grew, Momoi delighted in knowing them. She felt as though she was getting to know Tetsu-kun in a way no other person bothered to. His favourite author. The exact number of light novels he owned. His favourite sports drink brand, and his hatred of carbonated drinks.

These were the facts Dai-chan bugged her about all the time, just because they were convenient to know when Tetsu-kun’s birthday came about. “Satsuki, if I don’t get Tetsu something he likes he’ll _never_ let it go. Pleease?”

But Momoi jealously guarded them, because they were _hers_. She had _worked hard_ to find them, to collect them. And it almost broke her heart when Dai-chan would just get Tetsu-kun a popsicle, and Tetsu-kun would just smile, call him cheap, and then say, “For future reference, get me basketball merchandise next time. I like Nike.” How Tetsu-kun could so casually tell Dai-chan the data he so privately kept from everyone else, including her.

By the time Momoi moved to high school, Teikou had changed the purpose to her collection. The data she collected became less about the people, and more about the basketball. Kasamatsu Yukio’s drive pattern. Takao Kazunari’s passing style. The beautiful, beautiful trajectory of Himuro Tatsuya’s shots. Occasionally, though, she would find out little facts about them that made them more _people_ and less data points to her — Kasamatsu-senpai’s endearing nervousness around girls, Takao-kun’s knack with children, the exact number of love letters that entered Himuro-kun’s locker every day.

She tried not to remember them, because that would ruin her data analysis. She wouldn’t be able to map Takao-kun’s passing routes if all she could think about was how little girls fell over themselves giggling at his winks, and little boys rushed to highfive him. If instead of Kasamatsu-senpai’s footwork, she thought about his bright red face when he had opened the door for her. If she remembered Himuro-kun thanking every single girl in person for their letter, apologetic and honourable, instead of visualizing the flick of his wrist as he performed yet another beautiful shot. 

Kagamin’s data points casually blew all her previous practicalities and parameters out the window. After Touou lost to Seirin, Momoi had concentrated on gaining data on him, half motivated by the loss to Seirin, and half motivated by the fact that he was the one _always_ with Tetsu-kun, now. The exact time Tetsu-kun and him went to Maji Burger, without fail, every day. The exact number of burgers he would order, accompanied by the exact number of dollops of ketchup he squirted on them as he ate.

Momoi had started out being jealous of Kagamin, and had collected data on him on the vindictive need to beat him. To beat him for Dai-chan’s sake, to get Tetsu-kun to finally notice her if she could win over his current light, in some way, any way. But she found herself becoming fascinated by him, despite herself. The same way Dai-chan was, she found him fascinating as a rival for Tetsu-kun’s attention. 

The loss to Seirin galvanized Momoi in a way that made her _defensive_ of her collection, of her ability to collect data. She wondered if her efforts not been good enough to beat Seirin. But — it also made her take a good hard look at how she was treating people, her precious people that she wanted to always keep close to her heart.

By the time all of them, Momoi’s precious people, were gathered together, _finally_ playing basketball together without all the hangups and hurt, and a billion little issues Momoi consciously decided not to remember because it hurt to do so (Dai-chan lying on the roof, ignoring her and everyone; Mukkun’s fearful glances at Akashi-kun; Midorin’s increasingly isolation as he aimed successful shot after successful shot, ignoring them all; Ki-chan’s blithe, thoughtless cruelty; and Tetsu-kun, leaving them all behind…), she decided to watch by the side, as she always did, and just enjoy it for once.

To enjoy watching an _excellent_ game of basketball, without having to jot notes. To collect data that was little revelations of each person, without using it against them. Kiyoshi-senpai’s spirited explanation of hanafuda to a wide-eyed Ki-chan. Hayama-senpai rolling all over the court, laughing at whatever Izuki-senpai had said. Mitobe-senpai, writing down cooking tips for a vigorously nodding Sakurai-kun.

Data that Momoi felt proud to collect once more, and keep close, and dear, in her heart, in her memories, for the rest of her life.

 


End file.
